Iran & India bonding; Iran no longer under PRC

In an attempt to augment the relations between India and Iran to fight terrorism, the Union Government of India has removed Iran from the restricted visa list.

India envisages Iran as a supporter in fighting terrorism that is hinted through the increasing threats by Islamic terror groups.

” The order means that Iranians can easily apply for visa at our consulate in iran and each application will not have to be forwarded to [the] Intelligence Bureau and [the] Research and Analysis Wing here for verification,” a senior government official said.

The decision to strike off Iran from the prior referral category (PRC) of countries, comes after Ajit Doval convened a high level meeting a month back in order to explore the possibilities of lifting restrictions on visas for Iranians. The PRC list includes countries like Pakistan, Bangladesh and China.

“This agreement will stimulate the flow of investment, technology and personnel from India to Hong Kong Special Administrative Region and vice versa, prevent double taxation and provide for the exchange of information between the two contracting parties,” the statement said. “It will improve transparency in tax matters and will help curb tax evasion and tax avoidance,” it added. IANS